“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” —Alan Alda

Photo by Jim "Sky" Schuyler

Dear Educators,

“Take care of yourself, then you can take care of the world,” my now 97-year-old grandmother once told me, adding that it’s a smart, not selfish way to live.

In this newsletter, we offer stories, classroom tools, and resources to inspire you and your students to explore your individual gifts, and learn how others are sharing theirs. We are also pleased to feature the 7 Doors Project, created by Project Happiness, whose mission is to create lasting happiness by looking inward rather than outward.

It’s a new year. We have a new president. And, perhaps there will be a newly discovered you. The possibilities are exciting and endless.

Best,
Jing Fong
Education Outreach Manager, YES! Magazine

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YES! Recommends

Project Happiness’ 7 Doors Project will take your students on a journey of self-discovery that will ultimately lead them to understanding not only what is happiness for themselves, but also what is happiness for others.

Each door represents a facet of your path to happiness, and hosts a multimedia array of interviews, photos, films, questionnaires, and activities.

Your students can create their own digital portfolio on what makes them happy, hear the thoughts of their peers in the U.S., India, and Africa, and answer questions, such as, “What are your gifts, the things that make you feel totally alive?” In the end, your students will have created their own paths to happiness. This curriculum is appropriate for ages 13-19.

YES! Classroom Tools

Happiness-in-Action-Heroes
Meet our champions of the good life, from Tina Su and her simple path to happiness, to Titus, a chocolate lab with a therapeutic touch.

Measure Wealth or Happiness?
Take a step back from the Gross Domestic Product and introduce your students to the Happy Planet Index and the Genuine Progress Indicator.

What is Your Gift?Puanani Burgess reveals the power of uncovering each person’s gift. Read her tale of unexpected blessings and follow it by trying her exercise.

Connect and Engage

Beyond Inauguration DayBarack Obama has just become the first African American to serve as the President of the United States. Teaching Tolerance offers lesson plans that address the significance of Obama’s election and acknowledge the struggle for racial justice is far from over.

Women's History Month
Get ready for Women’s History Month in March: take the opportunity to spotlight women who have changed the world. The Smithsonian Institution has compiled compelling women’s history resources, including “Women Breaking Musical Barriers,” a collection of songs and videos.

Courage to TeachLike the old saying, “If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.” If a teacher’s not happy, her students won’t be happy. Parker Palmer's Center for Courage and Renewal offers quarterly retreats that focus on reclaiming the wholeness and vocational passion of pre-K to 12 educators on whom our society depends for so much.

Poetry

Ask your students to think carefully about Merwin's poem. What is the poet thankful for? What are they thankful for?

Listen
with the night falling we are saying thank you
we are stopping on the bridges to bow for the railings
we are running out of the glass rooms
with our mouths full of food to look at the sky
and say thank you
we are standing by the water looking out
in different directions.